I really enjoyed the thread titled "Police Harassment". Sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself. Anyway, my daughter and her husband were Officers in a small Colorado city so I get to ask them questions most can not get answered. I asked, what was their city's policy of a passenger that flees the scene of a traffic stop. They said their city's policy was to wave at the runner and wish him a good day. Their city manager told his officers that they were stopping only the driver for an offence, not the passenger. Though they had the right to control the scene for their own protection, a fleeing passenger was not a danger to the officer. Now had the passenger exited the car, wandered around the scene and refused to co-operate with commands then the officer has the right to restrain him. My question is, what is the policy of your city concerning this issue? Not wanting to start any police " hating responses, just wanted to know and understand.
Question for the LEO's
- Thread starter 30-30remchester
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4330Inroute
Member
Years ago I worked traffic detail and had instructions to check farm labor vehicles for proper documentarion, safety equipment and over capacity. There had been some accidents where overloaded vans had rolled killing workers being transported to the fields. One morning I stopped a van and just before it stopped rolling the doors flew open and the passengers about 12-14 flew out like a covey of quail into a cotton field. The driver was properly licensed and the vehicle was in compliance. The driver demanded to know what I was going to do about his passengers. I told him they were his problem and left. It was a suprise but at the same time funny. By the way I forwarded his information to the local border patrol office.
Arik
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As far as I know the policy of waving bye bye is the same here in SE Pa. The driver was stopped for breaking the law, not the passenger. Unless of course there was suspicion that the passenger was also involved
The focus of the initial stop will stay on the driver, the officer making the stop should and will keep his or her eye on the fleeing passenger as much as possible and radio as much information as they can. One must be aware of that person as a potential threat for coming back around to ambush the officer. To say bye bye kind of makes it sound like the stopping officer doesn't care and that isn't the case.
I worked in a town with typically 6 or 8 patrol officers on but once the radio says someone is running most will break and come if at all possible. And nearby jurisdictions slide in there also if they can. That was the blessing where I was at, a lot of help.
Back up officers will help with the stop when they arrive and some can start checking around to see if the runner is hiding out somewhere. And then they can go from there on checking the person out. Could be anything from a scared drunk kid to the carjacker who bailed out and left his victim in the driver's seat. Too many possibilities to go into. Usually something minor but one just never knows. Even if it is just a drunk kid, if you don't look around and that drunk kid passes out in a snow bank and dies...well, trust me you want to be able to say you did look around.
I probably would have worded it as we just say "bye bye" too but that is the simple version of what is really going on.
Odd, most police department policies and practices are a matter for open records.
I worked in a town with typically 6 or 8 patrol officers on but once the radio says someone is running most will break and come if at all possible. And nearby jurisdictions slide in there also if they can. That was the blessing where I was at, a lot of help.
Back up officers will help with the stop when they arrive and some can start checking around to see if the runner is hiding out somewhere. And then they can go from there on checking the person out. Could be anything from a scared drunk kid to the carjacker who bailed out and left his victim in the driver's seat. Too many possibilities to go into. Usually something minor but one just never knows. Even if it is just a drunk kid, if you don't look around and that drunk kid passes out in a snow bank and dies...well, trust me you want to be able to say you did look around.
I probably would have worded it as we just say "bye bye" too but that is the simple version of what is really going on.
Odd, most police department policies and practices are a matter for open records.
Last edited:
4330Inroute
Member
The town I worked in was 6800 and we had a total of 10 officers on the dept. but I usually worked alone on graveyard from 3am when the overlap shift went home until 8am when day shift came on. During the time of this incident an additional Officer was assigned to cover the town while I worked the farm labor vehicles. He was in the office when this incident took place. It wasn't an attitude of indifference to the situation because my focus was the driver. When the driver produced the proper documentation and the head count showed he was legal the stop was over as I had no other reason to detain him further.
OP
Thanks all for the replies. These replies are what I was hoping for. I didn't know if there was an "industry standard" response.
Rock185
US Veteran
I've worked a large dept. and a much smaller one. Used common sense. When an officer just couldn't help themselves, and chased somebody he/she had no reason to detain, the non-existant offense was called "Felony running" by their co-workers....
CelticSire
US Veteran
On those extremely rare days anymore where I find myself in uniform and in a patrol car, I'm realistic. I'm a 55 year old former paratrooper with bad knees who is wearing a vest, 25 pound gun belt, and boots. Ain't catching a 19 year old kid wearing felony flyers. Maybe he hates police, maybe he's late for something, maybe he just likes to run, maybe he's trying to decoy me away from the car so the driver can take off because there is dope and a dead body in the trunk. If I have reasonable suspicion to think he's running for a reason, get a good description, put it out on the radio, and deal with the driver.
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